My Ten songs and ten drabbles
by Rowana Renee
Summary: Halt's Apprentice: HAPPY LATE BIRTHDAY! He's really awesome, you know, so read these drabbles and show him some appreciation!


Ten Songs ten Drabbles: Idea Hijacked from ELFPEN the AWESOME.

Also, as a note, an IMPORTANT NOTE *Glares at you, forcing you to hide your bag of popcorn and nibbles and things and pie* *Coughs and declares epicness* Happy BIRTHDAY to HAlT'S APPRENTICE! Happy BIRTHDAY to HALT'S APPRENTICE! Happy BIRTHDAY dear Halt's Apprentice, happy BIIIIIIRRRRRTHHDAAAAy, TOOOOOOOO YOOOOU! And many MOOOORE! Seriously, everyone give him CAKE! And ICECREAM! And candles and presents and music sheets and guitars! Really, Halt's Apprentice is like, the unsung hero of the Ranger's Apprentice fandom; he's been here over a year, and he writes really REALLY good stories, and no one ever gives him any credit; plus he's a really great person! Really, he's literally the first friend I made when I joined the site, the most welcoming person I've ever met, methinks. So everyone send him a virtual round of applause, drop him a review on one of his stories if you haven't, or just put his name in your review to this story; He's amazing. ^;^

1. If everyone cared-Nickelback (Length is three minutes and twenty-Eight seconds. *Pretends to crack knuckles* lemme see what I can do...XP)

_Wham_!

Halt winced at the thundering impact of Wills' head with the desk. His apprentice seemed to be upset.

"You know if you just asked-"

"I don't want to _ask_!"

_Wham_!

Halt sighed and contemplated whether to ask his apprentice to calm down. "Well it wouldn't kill you, would it?"

Will sent him a glare that could have lit kindling. "Yes it _would_! I'm supposed to _know_!"

Halt shrugged. "I can't really help you then. But you really need to get a move on."

_Wham_!

Will continued to glare at the world in general. "Why'd she have to go and do that anyway, get a year older anyway? That's just not nice!"

Halt raised an eyebrow. "Would you rather she got killed first?"

Will paled. "No! Of course not! Just picking out a present for a one year old is _hard_!"

(A/N: No...I don't know why that song inspired that...sort of random I think...see, there's a good excuse; and you probably don't care so MOVING ON YO!)

2. Breath-Breaking Benjamin (Length is three minutes and thirty-Five seconds...cool)

Eyes narrowed in concentration the cloaked figure drew back the bowstring, while the man opposite him drew back as well. There they were, each facing an opponent of equal skill. They were locked in a deadly dance, sizing each other up and each facing the other with a deadly challenge in their eyes; I dare you.

One heart pounded in secret, nervous delight, while the other beat out a slow song like a drum in the hands of some wrathful villain, a call to war or rather some sort of challenge to himself, the shadowed one, the secret menace always hidden somewhere else.

They waited a few more seconds and then the arrows flew.

Flew like carnivorous ravens, flying to meet their targets. The winner of this duel was clear; the shadowed lurker. How could he not win?

After all, this was for Halt.

(A/N: Okay...I like this one...actually...I like it! Short as all getout, but I actually like this one! Moving on...oh and it was set Kings of Clonmel, baby. Omg I looooove my expanded RA horizons! EEP! XP)

3. Blow me Away-Breaking Benjamin (Length is three minutes and twenty-Seven seconds)

Morgarath slowly drew his sword, staring at it almost curiously as he did so. He could see the rangers, not far away, ready to be the death of him. Ha, like that was going to happen if he had anything to do about it.

But then there was the question; was it worth it.

After all, what did he have? A lost empire, soldiers that followed out of fear? What was that when added up and calculated? But then, did it matter that nothing mattered anymore, that he was nothing but a shadow on the wall?

Of course it mattered; he hadn't had his revenge yet.

"I could have done so much more..." he muttered to himself, lifting the dark weapon and hurrying to the field of battle.

He was ready.

One ranger fell and then another, then the next and another until he wasn't sure how many were dead and how many were dead.

But then he felt the arrow pierce him.

"You could have _been _so much more."

(A/N: *Crickets* what was that I wonder?)

4. The Dolly Song (Levas' polka)-Holly Dolly (Length is two minutes and fifty-Two seconds...oh lawd...)

Will was grinning massively.

Halt was watching with an evil look in his eyes from his hiding place behind the couch.

And Alyss was laughing her head off.

And the baby was still crying its eyes out.

Will was standing in the middle of the room doing the dumbest dance ever and singing.

"ya ta ta, da dagga dagga do, yada le das de a day a doh,"

The baby kept crying.

Will sulked and resumed. "Ya ta ta, da dagga dagga do, yada le gas de a day a do, leba debby debby day a do!"

Alyss slapped herself.

Will slouched to the floor in front of the baby. "Why isn't it funny?" he all but wailed.

Halt shrugged. "Because you're a bingle-bongle dingle-dangle, yickety doo, yickety dah, ping pong lippy tappy too tah."

The baby giggled. Life was so not fair.

(A/N: That was soooo doomed to failure from the moment "Levas' polka" came up on the playlist...*Cries* XP Anyways...if you want to hear the song, go to www dot leekspin dot com it's HILARIOUS, but the better one is Levas' Polka XP)

5. The Only One-Evanescence (Length is four minutes and thirty-Four seconds long)

"You know, you're not the only one."

Will sighed as Gilans' voice broke through his melancholy. He didn't want to listen to anyone at the moment; he wanted to be left alone with his sadness for just a little while, not hearing words of comfort or solace or anything. He just wanted to be alone.

"Will? Can you hear me?"

Will slowly looked up at Gilan, blinking away tears and trying to keep more from falling. He was surprised that anyone had even come to visit. It had been a long time since anyone had come, too long, he thought. And now that someone was here he didn't know what to do.

"Hi." it was a simple word, particularly from Gilan, but it still brought a small smile from Will.

"Hi..." he mumbled.

Gilan sat down on the porch beside him and beheld him with a knowing look. "Seacliff isn't the place you'd like to be, eh?"

Will nodded slowly. "They...they act like I'm the problem, I tell them what they need to do and they act so...so..."

"Ungrateful?" Gilan prompted.

Will nodded. "It's like, I'm here to protect them and they...they don't even know, they won't even look at me most of the time!"

Gilan placed an arm around his shoulder. "You feel alone, they need someone to help them and won't acknowledge it."

Will nodded again. "They act like I'm just a shadow, an unwanted shadow at that..."

Gilan slowly stood up, heading inside to make coffee; he could tell they would need it. "Just remember; you're a ranger, and that means that you're never really alone. You'll never be the only one."

(A/N *Crickets* oooookaaaaay...it says the next one is the Runaway Bride commentary but I don't think so; I am NOT typing for an hour listening to the *Coughs*Glorious*Coughs* voice of David Tennant (Angelic chorus, baby!) talk about that episode of DOCTOR WHOOO!)

6. I Will Not Bow-Breaking Benjamin (Length is: Three Minutes and thirty-Two seconds...epicness! Oh, this one is dedicated to Fuego Azule!)

They'd watched for so long, the kingdom rising and falling, the deaths of kings and queens, the fall over other lands and the demise of hierarchy, they'd seen wars and battles and great, bloody skirmishes and the loss of so much, they'd seen the victories, the conquests, the unfair tributes to those undeserving and the love lost on those who didn't appreciate it.

They'd seen the heroes, the villains. They'd seen the sons and daughters follow the footsteps of those giants, those great leaders and unsung, valiant angels, the invisible monsters and the lonely rocks that could only imagine greater purpose. They'd seen the smallest of the small rise up to be better than any before, they'd seen it all burn and they'd seen it all rebuilt. They'd seen everything.

And not once did they say a word. They were the silent watchers, the guardians.

They were the rangers.

(A/N: Can you tell that I don't know what I'm doing? lol...XP)

7. Far Away-Nickelback (Length three minutes and fifty-Eight seconds)

He'd never known the ride to Redmont could take so long. It was almost cruel, he thought, that he'd been held up by a silly thing like his duty to the kingdom, his job as a ranger, those bandits he'd been tracking. Yes, it had already taken too long, he wasn't about to let something so small as impending exhaustion slow him down.

He could see the castle then, coming into view. He smiled broadly as he finally drew close enough to see her, Alyss, waiting for him. She returned the grin, even as he fell sideways off of Tug, staggering a little before regaining his balance and running the rest of the way to her.

But that was just a dream, wasn't it? Aye, a nightmare really. He was far away from Redmont, on the battlefield so far away from anywhere he wanted to be. It wasn't right, his fevered mind kept replaying the events that he so desperately wanted to take part in.

He almost cried when he saw her coming closer, kneeling beside him. He knew it was just a dream, he was only imagining that she was there, holding his hand and whispering to him so quietly, so softly that he was certain that he couldn't really hear her.

But she was there.

And that made everything okay, didn't it?

(A/N: Two words. EPIC. And FAIL. *Facepalm* BleeeARGH! I needed like, two more minutes and then MOLTO BENE! DX *Wails in shame shame shame* PX)

8. Whisper-Evanescence (Length: five minutes and seventeen seconds. *Cracks a wry grin and huggles keyboard. Ohhh thissa be interestin' if I do say it...XP)

They were everywhere, weren't they? Yes, there wasn't a single spot that wasn't occupied by the monsters, by the darkness. He screamed in terror as they closed in on him, coming closer and closer as he wailed and begged for help; but no one was coming.

"Daddy!" he pleaded, retreating a little further into the darkness, choking on the soft substance around him as he flailed and thrashed in a desperate attempt to escape. Wrenching his eyes open he looked into the face of the threat; seeing the glowing eyes and misshapen flesh, the evil fangs and grasping claws, just waiting to tear him to shreds.

Another piteous scream was torn from him as a dark figure came even closer, approaching and just waiting to pounce.

But then, there it was! A stream of what looked like light. But surely there couldn't be any light, not in this darkness...But there it was!

Another dark figure, this one darker and smaller than the others, approached until it was within reach.

With a soft squeal of relief, the three year old wrapped his arms around his father, around the Ranger that chased away the monsters. "Thanks daddy..." he muttered, burying his face in the rangers' cloaked shoulder.

Halt nodded wordlessly, returning the hug with all the care a real father would.

But the whispers never stopped.

The whispering couldn't stop.

(A/N: Okay that was reallllly weird...yeah...uh HUH...totally...XP Yeah it was guardian ranger verse without Gil...hmmm...Gilan issssss...uh...NOT THERE. Yeah, he's off doing SOMETHING weird...dunno what it is, but he's doing SOMETHING XP)

9. Unknown Soldier-Breaking Benjamin (Length is: four minutes and two seconds (EPIC!))

It seemed so wrong, when they thought about it, that the real heroes never got any credit until they were dead. They shadowed, grim-faced rangers that were so feared and disliked, when they did all of the real work to keep the kingdom safe. They never got any thanks, any praise, any glory. And they chose for it to be so; never complained that they were committed to such a lonely life, just because they wanted to do something worth doing.

And yet, when they died, the world revolved around them.

Such a curious thing and yet, so fitting. The old ranger thought as his eyes drifted closed. So fitting that such a poetic life should end in a paradox to the very task itself, so fitting that, when they weren't there to know about it, everyone in the kingdom would shout their name in a way not out of fear, but respect and honour and dignity. Out of love, almost.

And yet, it was unfair that the same went for the apprentices, he thought as he opened his eyes once more and looked at the small figure of his apprentice, lying there so limp and quiet.

But that was the way of the rangers.

(A/N: I bet you thought I killed halt! DIDN'T YOU? MUAHAHAHA! No...XP)

10. Together Again-Evanescence (Length is: two minutes and forty-Seven seconds)

It was over, and all that was left was a blank space, a black void, empty and totally desolate. The trees had no leaves, the ground was sand and dust, ash and stone, no flowers or plants to break up the monotony. It was cold and windy, and there was nothing there. It was empty. And yet, the Dark Lord thought, it was worth it. Or it would be, when he could find them all again.

Find what he was looking for.

But in the cold and the rain and the nighttime sky, was it even possible to search? Was it worth the brief hope to have dashed upon the next sight of emptiness that awaited just beyond the next sunset?

No, no it wasn't worth it. That was why he had to do something. Of all of his regrets, perhaps the greatest was this; the descision to search in the first place. It had done nothing but bring him here, and now he couldn't stop searching.

Searching for himself.

And he would find himself if it killed him, it didn't matter how many others had to die for it to happen. He would find himself again.

* * *

Heaven help the restless,  
Ensnared in ashen light.  
Heaven help their followers  
Who are loyal through the fight.  
They're standing on the edge of fate  
To watch it die away.  
An echo to the fallen ones  
Who help them find their place.  
Sung to sleep by cold voices,  
The stars agree and burn.  
Their flaming eyes have closed again,  
And can do nothing but yearn.  
Who are you when your name is lost?  
Who are you when your words are cold?  
Where will you go when it's all over?  
Where will you go when the truth is told?  
Who will you be when they find you again?  
Who will you be when the photograph fades?  
Who will you be when the world will not spin?  
Who will you be when all that's left is your name?  
Heaven help the restless ones,  
Their deeds before their eyes.  
Heaven help the wandering ones,  
Heaven, save their lives.


End file.
